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Thursday, January 21, 2016

by Mary Wilson

Grandview Middle School eighth grade science teacher Hannah
Davis, along with the rest of the GMS staff, teaches one block of reading each
day. However, she doesn’t just teach reading to her students, she lives and
breathes it. Now in her seventh year of teaching, Davis started her career as a
student teacher at GMS before being offered the full-time position in 2009.

“I’ve never taught anywhere else; this is my home,” said
Davis.

Davis said she loves her reading class yet faces some challenges
with the curriculum. Despite not having the newest materials to teach with,
GMS’s librarian, Claudia Kimrey, has helped Davis to find books her students
will want to read.

“She’s the one who helps come up with different books and
getting our kids into different reading programs,” said Davis. “Every time she
hosts a book fair, I spend about $100 on new books.”

Davis has a personal library in her classroom, filled
primarily with books she has read and recommends to her students. She said that
students who don’t particularly like reading will come to her for
recommendations.

“I want to know what they’re reading,” said Davis. “If I
read what the kids are reading, then we can talk about the books together and
bond over them.”

She even gets into friendly competitions with students. One
in particular has read ten books as part of Kimrey’s Reading Counts program.

“I’ve only read seven,” said Davis. “She’s kicking my butt!”

In 2014, on tax day (April 15), the 32-year-old was
diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer. The devastating news floored Davis and
her family, husband Bryan and daughters Isabella and Siobhan.

“I only found it because my mom was diagnosed and I went and
got checked out,” said Davis. “If it weren’t for my mom, I would never have
known.”

Starting chemotherapy in May of 2014, Davis said her
students were more than supportive and helpful. At the end of that school year,
her hair started to fall out. Davis had most of her chemo done over the summer
before the start of the next school year.

“The school district was so helpful in making sure I had
enough days,” said Davis. “Coworkers were even offering me their time off.”

Davis returned to school in the Fall of 2014, completely bald and wearing a face mask. When students asked her what was going on, she’d use the
opportunity to educate them. Each Thursday during the fall, she went to receive
treatment.

“The kids were so supportive,” said Davis. “During that
time, I’d be gone on Thursday, and then I might be gone on Friday, too,
depending on how I was feeling.”

She then was out for a longer period of time when she
underwent a double mastectomy. Upon her return, Davis said her students were
constantly making sure she was okay.

“They’d wash their hands and sanitize them all the time,”
said Davis. “The parents were incredible, too, bringing me treats and checking
up on me.”

Being a science teacher, Davis took the opportunity to teach
her students about the different types of chemotherapy and cancer cells.

“What a perfect class for this real-life example right in
front of them,” said Davis. “My oncologist even gave me different ways to
explain what was going on with me to my students.”

She finished treatment at the beginning of the current
school year. While her students this year haven’t witnessed first-hand most of
Davis’ health issues, they continue to be supportive.

“It’s so nice to work in this environment,” said Davis. “I
don’t need to go anywhere else. We have our challenges, but the kids make my
job easier.” Davis said she appreciates the interest the students and parents
have shown in her.

Recently, Davis posted a writing opportunity for her
students in her Google Classroom. The contest, Read to Achieve, was sponsored
by KCTV-5 and the Missouri National Education Association. Students were asked
to nominate a teacher to win $1000 during the 2015-16 school year.

“I thought it was for the district to receive the money, I
wasn’t even thinking about me at all,” said Davis. “I told them they could
write about whoever has inspired them.”

Six students wrote letters nominating Davis for the prize
without telling her. The letters stated that Davis inspires them to be
self-confident; she makes them feel better about themselves; and that she has
shown them how to appreciate reading.

“They were so kind in what they wrote,” said Davis. “It made
me feel good to be able to help them love reading as much as I love reading.”

Davis said it was teachers when she was younger who taught
her to love to read. Those teachers knew which books to pick from and inspired
her to read new things. Davis is working on motivating her students while
holding them accountable.

“The day I found I won the contest was the same day I found
out my grandpa died,” said Davis. “I thought at first it was a joke, and it was
not funny.”

It was no laughing matter: Davis was presented last week
with a check for $1000 from the Read to Achieve contest. She is the first
Kansas City-area teacher to win this year.

“I’m crying because my grandpa died and I’m crying because
I’m happy I won,” said Davis. “My emotions were all over the place.”

She plans to use the money to add to her classroom library.
Her list of upcoming books has grown on her wish list and she’d like to get
more series of books into the hands of her students.

“Teaching reading here is hard because it’s a random class
that is not part of my normal science content,” said Davis. “Adjusting to that
has been good and I have so enjoyed teaching it.”

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